At Belmont, we use FFT’s Success for All Phonics programme, which is a complete Systematic Synthetic Phonics (SSP) programme validated by the Department for Education. Success for All Phonics provides 68 fully decodable reading books (Shared Readers), daily phonics and reading lesson plans, assessment tools, picture cards, mnemonics for letter formation and all other teaching resources needed to support the effective teaching of phonics from EYFS to the end of Year 1.

Success for All Phonics is implemented from the beginning of Reception, where we first focus on learning letter sounds and names through internalising the alphabet chant. We teach phonics daily through twenty to thirty-minute whole-class sessions, time dependent on year group. Having regular opportunities to learn and consolidate their phonic knowledge enables children to make a smooth transition from Reception to Key Stage 1. Our daily lesson plans cover all the main Grapheme–Phoneme Correspondences (GPCs) and Common Exception Words (CEWs) to provide children with the phonic knowledge and skills required for success in the Year 1 Phonics Screening Check. In order to effectively measure and respond to pupil progress in phonics, we undertake phonics assessments for each child and complete these six times over the course of the academic year (once each half-term).

As well as daily phonics sessions, Success for All Phonics also consists of daily thirty-minute reading lessons which build upon the knowledge taught in phonics lessons. This provides regular opportunities for the children to put their phonics into practice by blending words which include the focus phoneme for each day.

Success for All Phonics is also hugely effective in teaching children who are new to English or learning phonics for the first time. It is fully aligned with FFT’s reading tutoring programme (Tutoring with the Lightning Squad), which is used to provide catch-up support for children where necessary across Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.